Was 6 hrs late w/ my Warfarin last night - big deal?

[ARGreenMN]

I've been 2-3 hrs late before and wasn't too worried. But last night I went to bed w/o taking it, and woke up in the middle of the night (luckily) and remembered I'd forgotten... Normally take it at 10 pm, took it at 4 am... Anyone have thoughts on whether this is a big deal? Do I need to be worried 2-3 days from now? Do I just go right back to my normal schedule tonight?

 

[Jkm7]

You're fine. No problem.

 

[dick0236]

Andy, you did the right thing and I wouuld not worry about it.

 

[ARGreenMN]

Ok, cool. I figured that would be the case, but thought I'd check anyway. I think I remember seeing posts about missing a dose entirely, so I'll go back and find those just in case I ever totally forget. Even though I've got an alarm set on my cell phone, I ended up being out later last night than I thought, and didn't have my pills with me. So planned on taking them when I got home, but forgot...

 

[jax]

yeah i wouldn't worry about it either andy. i have been late taking it a few times. i even think once i remembered the next morning i hadn't taken it the night before and i tested fine. Now taking my medication is like second nature although there are times when I am busy that it might be an hour or two later than usual.

 

[Ross]

Since it's so slow acting, you could take it 12 hours late and still not worry about it.

 

[ALCapshaw2]

Whenever I discover I have forgotten a dose (assuming it is withing 24 hours), I take the missed dose IMMEDIATELY to minimize the 'time without Coumadin'. If it is less than 12 hours, I just resume my regular schedule (i.e. take Coumadin at bedtime). If it is over 12 hours, I split the Next Dose in half, take 1/2 on schedule and the next half the next morning, then resume my normal (nightly) schedule. Seems to work OK without over-dosing and gets me back to my normal weekly dose after 2 or 3 days.

 

[catwoman]

Andy:

I forgot my Monday dose (5mg) this week -- until Tuesday morning, when I normally take my pill. I had a little change in my normal routine Monday a.m. @ breakfast, and I figure that's why I forgot it.
I keep extra warfarin in my desk @ work -- 1's and 10's. So I took 2.5mg (1/2 the missed dose) Tuesday a.m., in addition to my normal 5mg. Wednesday a.m., I took my usual 5mg + the balance of the missed dose.
Yesterday (Thursday) I forgot to take my warfarin until I got home from work. So I took it.

I had my annual cardio visit + echo this morning. I tested my INR when I got up and it was 4.1 (was 2.5 on July 14).

The med tech who took me into the examining room after my echo asked who does my INR tests and I said I do, that I have my own tester. She was quite interested, so we chatted a little about it.
When my cardio came in, he asked how my testing was going, and I told him about the missed doses and how I handled them. He nodded and said, "You've got it under control. You're doing just as well as the nurses do here (at the practice's anticoagulation clinic)."

I figure my 4.1 was a little jumbled because of making up for the missed dose. Ordinarily, I would not have tested so quickly after adjusting for a missed dose. But ... I did have a cardio appointment and needed that INR number ... just in case he asked.

 

[Luana]

Andy,
No spinach for you!

 

[DavesMom]

Like the others said, it's nothing to worry about. I've been three to four hours late when I've traveled and haven't had any problems. When I first started on coumadin I was really scared to be even twenty minutes late, but now I know it's no big deal.

 

[Mimi]

Andy,

I forgot to take my warfarin one night and the next day I got an INR test done. Unfortunately my INR dropped to 2.1. My doctor asked me if there was a problem and I told him that I missed a dose and he made me do another INR test several days later and increased my warfarin levels.

Mimi

 

[Ross]

Andy,

I forgot to take my warfarin one night and the next day I got an INR test done. Unfortunately my INR dropped to 2.1. My doctor asked me if there was a problem and I told him that I missed a dose and he made me do another INR test several days later and increased my warfarin levels.

Mimi

He should not have done that. Let me guess, your INR was too high the next time around.